Namhasin House, Koh Tao, day 1

Our brief stop in Koh Phagnan is coming to an end today as we jump on a ferry and head North again. As we get up and pack we are both slightly aching from the cycling yesterday, but we are excited to get to Koh Tao, a place Amy remembers as very nice. After a quick breakfast in the same spot we ate last night (this time charcoal infused toast is on the menu instead of pizza), we say a sad goodbye to Sonya.
As we wait for our taxi we chat to our lovely host for around fifteen minutes. She has a very infectious laugh, and despite not knowing what she is saying most of the time, is very entertaining and somebody who makes you laugh along with her despite not hearing the punchline. As we leave she waves us away and watches us climb into the taxi, and we again say bye to someone who we like very much, but will probably never see again. later, as we wait for the ferry, we check her facebook as she told us we would be on there. She has posted two photos along with a poem. The translation doesn't work very well, but I think I am described as a slow man!
On a side note, Sonya told us that if we turned left yesterday on the bikes, instead of right, we would have been on a lovely flat road right around the island. This is the direction we head in now, and it is rather painful to look out of the car window at the incredibly flat and scenic road we are driving on.
Another ferry, and this time we sit inside in the air conditioned cabin where we are safe from any torrential downpours that like to occur at the most inconvenient times. It takes around 90 minutes until we arrive on Koh Tao. Our hotel is only around a mile away, and we decide to tighten our bags and walk up the hilly road. The Sun is beating down on us mercilessly, but the walk around the place is lovely. It certainly feels more like an island then the other two, and at a tiny 2km wide and 8km long, you can almost feel the surrounding sea as you wander. Wander we do, up and down, past small shacks with yapping dogs outside, and large petrol stations. Palm trees line the road when there isn't a massage parlour or a restaurant there. It is lovely, but we are very excited to get our bags down.
We take a break at a restaurant called JT's. It looks like your average run of the mill place, but when we are given our plates we realise it isn't. The portions are huge, and the green curry fried rice goes down a dream. It costs 60 baht a meal (£1.50) and we plan to come back again despite our hotel being another 400 metres away. Or so we think. Our map is telling us that, but as we set off I glance down a side street and see a sign for our hotel. It is right next door to JT's! If I hadn't seen it, it would have been a nightmare, but we are welcomed in by another lovely host who tells us all we need to know about the island in a brief but very thorough introduction. The room is nice with a lovely balcony which we need as a fan is our only relief from the sweltering heat.
It is almost time for the sunset, so we head to a lovely little bay a small walk from our hotel and relax for a bit. Koh Tao really is beautiful. The beaches are paradise, and we revel in the fact we have five days here. As we watch the sunset on another almost empty beach, it seems there is nowhere else we would rather be. Stress doesn't exist on these beaches.
Weirdly after landing on such a lovely place, we decide it's time to book our flight home. We load up with beer and wine to get us through the ordeal. We first book a hotel which hotels.com will pay us to stay in for two nights for being loyal customers. We are given 30 quid a night to spend which out here gets you luxury. Then it is flight time. We pick a good flight home, despite a risky 75 minute stopover to hop between flights. My finger hovers over the confirm button for a while, knowing that it is the beginning of the end. It is hard to lower it. I concentrate on mustering the thought of Sunday roasts into my mind, hoping they will override the memory of the beach I am just sat on. Fish and chips. Sky Sports. Pints of beer. Friends and family. The button is pressed. We are coming home on the 5th of March.
We go to JT's, drunk from the alcohol, but also on the thought of going home. It is another glorious meal, and after a few more beers we head back, ready for some sleep. The room is boiling hot, and the fan doesn't offer as much relief as it needs to. It's going to be a long, long night.Læs mere